Joseph Gott (1785 – 8 January 1860) was a British sculptor. His

terracotta Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based non-vitreous ceramic OED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used for earthenware obj ...

groups and animal and children pieces were very popular in the 1830s.

Life

Gott was born at Calverley near

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

in 1785 the son of industrialist Benjamin Gott, a woollen manufacturer in Leeds and Mayor of Leeds from 1799. Joseph was baptised on 11 December 1785 in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. Unlike his brothers he did not join the family business of Gott & Sons. He was apprenticed to the eminent sculptor

John Flaxman John Flaxman (6 July 1755 – 7 December 1826) was a British sculptor and draughtsman, and a leading figure in British and European Neoclassicism. Early in his career, he worked as a modeller for Josiah Wedgwood's pottery. He spent several yea ...

in London from 1798 to 1802. He joined the

Royal Academy Schools The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

in 1805. He received patronage from his rich cousin Benjamin Gott and also George Banks a wealthy Yorkshireman. In 1822,

Sir Thomas Lawrence Sir Thomas Lawrence (13 April 1769 – 7 January 1830) was an English people, English portrait painter and the fourth president of the Royal Academy. A child prodigy, he was born in Bristol and began drawing in Devizes, where his father was a ...

gave him a letter of introduction to

Antonio Canova Antonio Canova (; 1 November 1757 – 13 October 1822) was an Italians, Italian Neoclassical sculpture, Neoclassical sculptor, famous for his marble sculptures. Often regarded as the greatest of the Neoclassical artists,. his sculpture was ins ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. He did not take this trip immediately and only in 1824 did his father agree to underwrite the cost of his travel and accommodation in Rome. Thereafter he spent most of his remaining life in Rome. His most successful period ended abruptly in 1838 when the

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

epidemic brought an abrupt end to the usually steady stream of British tourists going to

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

on the grand tour. Not only this, the epidemic killed his children, and his wife's memory was destroyed by the disease. Gott ceased working in 1845 and went into a long depression. In his early years in Rome he spent some time with young

Joseph Severn Joseph Severn (7 December 1793 – 3 August 1879) was an English portrait and subject painter and a personal friend of the English poet John Keats. He exhibited portraits, Italian genre, literary and biblical subjects, and a selection of ...

. From 1828 until death, Gott lived in a large apartment at 155 Via Babuino in Rome (this building still exists). His most unusual work is the tomb of Col Edward Cheney which depicts him on his dying horse at Waterloo. He died in

on 8 January 1860. He is buried in the

Protestant Cemetery, Rome The Non-Catholic Cemetery (), also referred to as the Protestant Cemetery () or the English Cemetery (), is a private cemetery in the Rioni of Rome, rione of Testaccio in Rome. It is near Porta San Paolo and adjacent to the Pyramid of Cestius, ...

often said to be one of the most beautiful cemeteries in the world. It is noted that he sculpted many of the monuments therein. Here he shares company such as

Keats John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821) was an English poet of the second generation of Romantic poets, along with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. His poems had been in publication for less than four years when he died of tub ...

and Shelley.

Family

His first wife, Lydia, died in 1838 or soon after. He lost two daughters in the cholera epidemic of 1838. In 1841, in

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 152,916 residents as of 2025. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn ...

, Joseph married Anna Drew, daughter of William Drew of

Mangotsfield Mangotsfield is a village and former civil parish in the unitary authority area of South Gloucestershire, in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, England, to the north-east of Bristol. The village was mentioned in the Domesday Book in 1086 ...

Known works

*Samson (1805) exhibited at RA *Jacob Wrestling the Angel (1819) n/k *Head of

Bacchante In Greek mythology, maenads (; ) were the female followers of Dionysus and the most significant members of his retinue, the ''thiasus''. Their name, which comes from μαίνομαι (''maínomai'', “to rave, to be mad; to rage, to be angry ...

(1820)

Chatsworth House Chatsworth House is a stately home in the Derbyshire Dales, north-east of Bakewell and west of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, Chesterfield, England. The seat of the Duke of Devonshire, it has belonged to the House of Cavendish, Cavendish family si ...

Sisyphus In Greek mythology, Sisyphus or Sisyphos (; Ancient Greek: Σίσυφος ''Sísyphos'') was the founder and king of Ancient Corinth, Ephyra (now known as Corinth). He reveals Zeus's abduction of Aegina (mythology), Aegina to the river god As ...

(1821) n/k *Bust of

William Hogarth William Hogarth (; 10 November 1697 – 26 October 1764) was an English painter, engraving, engraver, pictorial social satire, satirist, editorial cartoonist and occasional writer on art. His work ranges from Realism (visual arts), realistic p ...

(1824) for

*Dying

Spartacus Spartacus (; ) was a Thracians, Thracian gladiator (Thraex) who was one of the Slavery in ancient Rome, escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major Slave rebellion, slave uprising against the Roman Republic. Historical accounts o ...

(DNK)

Soane Museum Sir John Soane's Museum is a house museum, located next to Lincoln's Inn Fields in Holborn, London, which was formerly the home of neo-classical architect John Soane. It holds many drawings and architectural models of Soane's projects and a ...

, London *

Little Red Riding Hood "Little Red Riding Hood" () is a fairy tale by Charles Perrault about a young girl and a Big Bad Wolf. Its origins can be traced back to several pre-17th-century European Fable, folk tales. It was later retold in the 19th-century by the Broth ...

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

, London *Greyhound with Puppies (1825) previously at Normanhurst Court *Bust of Benjamin Gott his father (1828) Leeds art Gallery *

Pug The Pug is a breed of dog with the physically distinctive features of a wrinkly, short-muzzled face, and curled tail. An ancient breed, with roots dating back to 400 B.C., they have a fine, glossy coat that comes in a variety of colors, most ...

and Cat (1828) for the

Earl of Shrewsbury Earl of Shrewsbury () is a hereditary title of nobility created twice in the Peerage of England. The second earldom dates to 1442. The holder of the Earldom of Shrewsbury also holds the title of Earl of Waterford (1446) in the Peerage of Ireland ...

*Bust of George Banks (1828) Leeds Art Gallery *Sleeping Venus (1830) purchased by

*Family Group: Man, Woman and two Children (1830) purchased by

*Female at her Bath (1830) purchased by

*Boy and Greyhound (1831) for

Earl Cadogan Earl Cadogan is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Great Britain for the Cadogan family. The second creation, in 1800, was for Charles Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan, Charles Cadogan, 3rd Baron Cadogan. History Of Welsh origin ...

*Seated statue of William Ewart (1832) St James' Chapel in

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

*Bust of

William Gott Lieutenant-General William Henry Ewart Gott, (13 August 1897 – 7 August 1942), nicknamed "Strafer", was a senior British Army officer who fought during both the First and the Second World Wars, reaching the rank of lieutenant-general while ...

his younger brother (1834) Leeds Art Gallery *Ruth Gleaning (1855) n/k *Bust of Benjamin Gott (1856) for Leeds Literary Society *Bust of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

(DNK)

Capitoline Museum The Capitoline Museums () are a group of art and archaeological museums in Piazza del Campidoglio, on top of the Capitoline Hill in Rome, Italy. The historic seats of the museums are Palazzo dei Conservatori and Palazzo Nuovo, facing on the centr ...

in Rome *Bust of

Ariadne In Greek mythology, Ariadne (; ; ) was a Cretan princess, the daughter of King Minos of Crete. There are variations of Ariadne's myth, but she is known for helping Theseus escape from the Minotaur and being abandoned by him on the island of N ...

(DNK) at

*Bust of

John Barran John Barran may refer to: *Sir John Barran, 1st Baronet Sir John Barran, 1st Baronet (3 August 1821 – 3 May 1905) was a British clothing manufacturer and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party politician. Early life Barran was born in London in ...

(DNK)

Leeds Art Gallery Leeds Art Gallery in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, is a gallery, part of the Leeds Museums & Galleries group, whose collection of 20th-century British Art was designated by the British government in 1997 as a collection "of national importance ...

Monuments

*Monument to Lady Mary Williams in

Walton-on-Thames Walton-on-Thames, known locally as Walton, is a market town on the bank (geography), south bank of the River Thames, Thames in northwest Surrey, England. It is in the Borough of Elmbridge, about southwest of central London. Walton forms part ...

Parish Church (1824) *Monument to Thomas Fairfax in

Gilling Gillingr (Old Norse: ; also Gilling) is a jötunn in Norse mythology, and the father of Suttungr. Gillingr and, later, his wife are murdered by the dwarfs Fjalar and Galar. In revenge, his son Suttungr tortures the dwarfs into giving him the mea ...

Parish Church (1828) *Monument to Thomas Lloyd (1828) in Leeds Parish Church *Memorial to 5 year old Emily Cadogan in

Durham Cathedral Durham Cathedral, formally the , is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Durham, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Durham and is the Mother Church#Cathedral, mother church of the diocese of Durham. It also contains the ...

(1830) *Monument to Mary and Samuel Hartley in

Bradford Cathedral Bradford Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of St Peter, is an Anglican cathedral in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, one of three co-equal cathedrals in the Diocese of Leeds alongside Ripon and Wakefield. Its site has been used for Christ ...

(1833) *Tomb of William Sharp in

(1835) *Tomb of his father Benjamin Gott in

Armley Armley is a district in the west of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It starts less than from Leeds city centre. Like much of Leeds, Armley grew in the Industrial Revolution and had several mills, one of which now houses the Leeds Industrial ...

Parish Church (1840) *Tomb of Jonathan Ackroyd in All Saints Chapel in Halifax (1847) *Monument to Col. Edward Cheney of the

Scots Greys The Royal Scots Greys was a cavalry regiment of the Army of Scotland that became a regiment of the British Army in 1707 upon the Union of Scotland and England, continuing until 1971 when they amalgamated with the 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of ...

, famed for having four horses killed under him at Waterloo in

Gaddesby Gaddesby is a village and civil parish in the Melton borough of Leicestershire, England. The population of the civil parish (including Ashby Folville and Barsby) at the 2011 census was 762. It is located around southwest of Melton Mowbray and ...

Parish Church (1848)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gott, Joseph 1785 births 1860 deaths English sculptors People from the West Riding of Yorkshire (before 1974)